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Power Outage: So Much for the Middle Powers
(Politico)
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Australia Tuesday on the second leg of his tour of the Indo-Pacific region, one month after his widely acclaimed speech at the World Economic Forum at Davos. In Switzerland, the Canadian lamented the end of the old rules-based international order and urged “middle powers” to act together “because if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu.”
But never have the “middle powers” seemed less autonomous and able to influence their own destinies. Instead, they’re having to scramble in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s decisions, ones that impact them directly, and without getting a say. When they do question, quibble or detour, they get slammed. On Monday, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth took issue with “our traditional allies, who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force.”
War Fallout: Trump Says He’ll Cut Off Trade With Spain Over Air Base Use (Bloomberg)
Donald Trump said he will “cut off all trade with Spain” after the country denied access to its military bases for his bombing campaign against Iran, spurring a sharp rebuke from Madrid that the US president must respect international trade agreements.
Trump didn’t explain how he planned to follow through with that threat, which could prove particularly difficult since the US has a trading relationship with the broader European Union. Later, he suggested he had the power to impose a full embargo on goods from the country, though didn’t indicate explicitly that he planned to do so.
Has War Taken Rate Cuts Off the Table? New York and Minneapolis Federal Reserve Presidents Point to New Uncertainty From Iran War (Bloomberg)
Two Federal Reserve officials on Tuesday said the US-Israeli attacks on Iran had introduced another element of uncertainty for policymakers, with the most important question centering on how long energy prices might remain elevated.
“Right now it’s just too soon to know what imprint this has on inflation and for how long,” Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said at the Bloomberg Invest conference in New York.
New York Fed President John Williams, speaking at a separate event, noted the impact on financial markets was so far “reasonably muted” and that oil prices had moved up, but not yet “in a dramatic way.”
Not That Anyone Cares, But: Interest on US Debt Has Tripled Since 2020 (Fortune)
The United States is now paying nearly $970 billion a year just to service the interest on its $38.8 trillion national debt—a figure that has nearly tripled since 2020 and already exceeds what the federal government spends on national defense or Medicaid, according to a February analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB).
2026 Midterms Watch: Talarico Triumphs as G.O.P. Heads to Runoff: 6 Takeaways from Texas (New York Times)
James Talarico won the state’s Democratic primary for Senate, while Senator John Cornyn faces a runoff against Ken Paxton, his right-wing challenger.
Talarico finished ahead of Representative Jasmine Crockett, a liberal firebrand, who had yet to concede when The A.P. called the race after 2:30 a.m. Eastern. The primaries exposed the divisions in both parties — and Republicans are staring down another acrimonious stretch of a campaign that has already featured talk of infidelity, indictment and impeachment.
Market News: Panic Sweeps Korean Stocks in Biggest One-Day Crash on Record (Bloomberg)
Landmark Guns Verdict: Man Who Gave His Teen a Rifle Is Guilty of Murder After School Shooting (New York Times)
The father of a teenage boy who is accused of a deadly mass shooting at his Georgia high school was found guilty on Tuesday of failing to heed warnings about his son and allowing him unfettered access to the powerful assault-style rifle used in the attack.
The jury deliberated only about two hours before concluding that the father, Colin Gray, 54, was guilty of more than two dozen charges, including second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter, stemming from the attack on Sept. 4, 2024, at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga. Two students and two teachers were killed.
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NYC Must-See Arts: This ‘Romeo and Juliet’ Dance Unfolds Onstage and on Camera (New York Times)
Benjamin Millepied’s “Romeo and Juliet Suite” — created for the L.A. Dance Project in 2022, and now being staged at the Park Avenue Armory —
ended up marrying Prokofiev’s music to both live dance and film. The work features choreography that often spills off the stage, traversing theater hallways and backrooms. A camera follows the dancers everywhere, broadcasting footage on a screen that looms over the proscenium. Some of the story’s most charged moments, including the balcony scene and the killing of Tybalt, are only shown onscreen.
A film-centric “Romeo and Juliet” aligns with Millepied’s ongoing efforts to blend classical dance and contemporary culture — to create works that speak to a broader audience than the typical ballet crowd. The New York premiere runs through March 21. Tickets are on sale here.
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